Heaven Official's Blessing: Tian Guan Ci Fu (novel) Vol. 2
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Plot Summary
This is the second volume in a xianxia fantasy series set in a world where cultivators, practitioners trained in Daoist magic and martial arts, inhabit three realms: the Heavenly Realm of ascended gods, the Mortal Realm of living humans, and the Ghost Realm of the dead. Xie Lian, the former crown prince of the fallen Kingdom of Xianle, has ascended to godhood for an unprecedented third time after two prior banishments. In Volume 1, he resolved a crisis at Banyue Pass with the help of Hua Cheng, a supreme ghost king, the highest rank among powerful ghosts.
Volume 2 opens with Xie Lian wearing a ring left by Hua Cheng around his neck and being summoned to the Heavenly Court. The Heavenly Emperor Jun Wu presides over a hearing in which General Pei Ming tries to implicate Hua Cheng in the Banyue affair. Feng Xin and Mu Qing, Xie Lian's former bodyguard and attendant who now serve as martial gods, confirm that wounds on a clone body match Hua Cheng's legendary scimitar, Eming. The accused officer, Pei Xiu, accepts responsibility, and Jun Wu sentences him to 200 years of exile.
Jun Wu privately reveals that a heavenly official sent a distress signal from near Ghost City, Hua Cheng's territory, and asks Xie Lian to investigate. He warns that Eming is a cursed blade and assigns the Wind Master, a heavenly official who governs wind, as Xie Lian's partner. The Wind Master turns out to be Shi Qingxuan, a male cultivator who previously appeared as a woman. Shi Qingxuan explains that mortal worshippers sculpted him as female, and since divine form is shaped by belief, both appearances became genuine.
The two descend to Ghost City, a fantastical marketplace of the dead. At the Gambler's Den, they meet Lang Qianqiu, the Martial God of the East and former crown prince of Yong'an, the kingdom that conquered Xianle. Shi Qingxuan arranged for Lang Qianqiu to rendezvous there, but Lang Qianqiu disrupts the gambling and is suspended from the ceiling by Hua Cheng, who lounges behind silk curtains. Xie Lian gambles for Lang Qianqiu's release. Through a narrow slit in the curtains, Hua Cheng guides Xie Lian's hands to teach him dice technique, an intimate contact that draws giggles from the ghost audience. Hua Cheng then emerges in his true form: slightly older and taller than his youthful disguise, with raven-black hair, red robes, and a single bright eye behind a black eyepatch.
After regrouping, Xie Lian spots a bandaged ghost boy from Volume 1 being beaten by ghosts. The Waning Moon Officer, a prominent figure in Ghost City, escorts Xie Lian to Paradise Manor, Hua Cheng's private residence. There, Hua Cheng locates the boy, who reveals he is from Yong'an, not Xianle. The news is alarming because Human Face Disease, a plague that causes grotesque faces to erupt from the body, was thought exclusive to Xianle. Xie Lian names the boy Lang Ying and resolves to care for him.
When Hua Cheng briefly leaves, Xie Lian follows the Waning Moon Officer and watches him unlock a magically sealed room with enchanted dice. Xie Lian suspects the missing official may be imprisoned inside. Separately, Hua Cheng shows Xie Lian his armory, where Xie Lian meets the sentient scimitar Eming, whose hilt bears a silver eye that squints happily when petted, convincing him to dismiss warnings about the blade.
That night, Shi Qingxuan infiltrates the manor. Using luck Hua Cheng transferred to Xie Lian through physical contact, the two open the sealed passage. After harrowing detours through monster tunnels, they find Ming Yi, the Earth Master, one of five elemental heavenly officials, gravely wounded. Ming Yi had been spying on Hua Cheng for the Heavenly Realm for over a decade. Xie Lian supposes Hua Cheng likely discovered Ming Yi's identity after spotting him at Banyue Pass and imprisoned him.
Attempting to escape, Xie Lian lands in Hua Cheng's lap in the armory. Shi Qingxuan summons winds to break through the roof, and Lang Qianqiu crashes in, swinging his greatsword. Xie Lian grabs a sword from the wall and throws himself between the two blades, deflecting Lang Qianqiu's strike and blocking Eming. His right arm is severely mangled. Shi Qingxuan's wind powers fan a small fire far beyond intention, and over half of Paradise Manor burns.
Back in the Heavenly Court, Lang Qianqiu seizes Xie Lian's wrist and calls him State Preceptor, the title of Yong'an's royal tutor. He explains that the masked State Preceptor Fangxin, who taught him swordsmanship for five years, committed the Gilded Banquet Massacre, slaughtering the royal family at Lang Qianqiu's 17th birthday feast. He recognizes Xie Lian's two-sword technique and reveals he once killed Fangxin and sealed the body. Xie Lian confesses, but Jun Wu refuses banishment and detains him for interrogation.
Hua Cheng breaks into the Heavenly Court, connecting Xie Lian's palace to a remote valley via a teleportation array, a magical formation enabling instant transit. His wraith butterflies swarm Feng Xin and Mu Qing while leaving Xie Lian untouched, and he pulls Xie Lian through. Lang Qianqiu pursues them and forces a duel by hurling the sword Fangxin at Xie Lian's feet. Xie Lian agrees but immediately binds Lang Qianqiu with Ruoye, his sentient silk band. Bound on the ground, Lang Qianqiu declares he will never become hollow with hatred. Xie Lian laughs with genuine relief.
Hua Cheng transforms Lang Qianqiu into a roly-poly doll and leads Xie Lian into the lair of Qi Rong, the Green Ghost, one of the Four Calamities (the four most notorious ghost powers) and Xie Lian's younger cousin. After restoring Lang Qianqiu, Hua Cheng forces Qi Rong to confess while blocking Xie Lian from intervening. Qi Rong reveals that Prince An Le, the last descendant of Xianle royalty, orchestrated the Gilded Banquet under Qi Rong's manipulation. Xie Lian, as Fangxin, discovered the conspiracy mid-execution, killed An Le to prevent further bloodshed, and killed the Yong'an king to stop the extermination of Xianle survivors. He took sole blame to protect both peoples. Lang Qianqiu, overwhelmed, bisects Qi Rong and departs to hunt the ghost's true remains.
Alone with Hua Cheng, Xie Lian breaks down, anguished that doing the right thing produced such devastation. Hua Cheng tells him firmly that he was not wrong. When Xie Lian warns against placing too much faith in any person, Hua Cheng replies that for some, the mere existence of a certain person in this world is hope in itself. The two free over 300 captive humans from the lair.
Jun Wu later reveals that Hua Cheng has an unidentified agent within the Heavenly Realm and warns Xie Lian to remain cautious. Xie Lian visits the hidden Imperial Mausoleum beneath Mount Taicang, where he discovers that Qi Rong, having possessed an innocent man's body, desecrated his mother's coffin. Enraged, Xie Lian raises the sword Fangxin as the scene cuts away.
The volume's second arc flashes back 800 years to Xie Lian's youth in Xianle. At 17, he performs as the God-Pleasing Martial Warrior, the lead ceremonial role in the kingdom's most important religious festival. When a bandaged child falls from the city wall, Xie Lian catches him but loses his golden mask, cutting the parade short in an inauspicious disruption. The flashback reveals the dynamics among young Xie Lian, Feng Xin, Mu Qing, and Qi Rong. Mu Qing endures bullying due to his low social standing while Xie Lian advocates for his talent. Qi Rong captures the child and drags him through the streets; Xie Lian rescues the boy, who gives his nickname as Honghong-er.
At Mount Taicang, resentful spirits swarm toward the child, and Chief State Preceptor Mei Nianqing divines that Honghong-er bears the fate of the Star of Solitude, destined to bring destruction to everyone around him. Xie Lian embraces the screaming child, insisting it is not his fault. He defiantly declares that if the heavens condemn him for doing right, then the heavens are wrong. That night, Honghong-er vanishes. After further travels, Xie Lian ascends to the heavens, an event that astounds all three realms. The story continues in Volume 3.
Volume 2 opens with Xie Lian wearing a ring left by Hua Cheng around his neck and being summoned to the Heavenly Court. The Heavenly Emperor Jun Wu presides over a hearing in which General Pei Ming tries to implicate Hua Cheng in the Banyue affair. Feng Xin and Mu Qing, Xie Lian's former bodyguard and attendant who now serve as martial gods, confirm that wounds on a clone body match Hua Cheng's legendary scimitar, Eming. The accused officer, Pei Xiu, accepts responsibility, and Jun Wu sentences him to 200 years of exile.
Jun Wu privately reveals that a heavenly official sent a distress signal from near Ghost City, Hua Cheng's territory, and asks Xie Lian to investigate. He warns that Eming is a cursed blade and assigns the Wind Master, a heavenly official who governs wind, as Xie Lian's partner. The Wind Master turns out to be Shi Qingxuan, a male cultivator who previously appeared as a woman. Shi Qingxuan explains that mortal worshippers sculpted him as female, and since divine form is shaped by belief, both appearances became genuine.
The two descend to Ghost City, a fantastical marketplace of the dead. At the Gambler's Den, they meet Lang Qianqiu, the Martial God of the East and former crown prince of Yong'an, the kingdom that conquered Xianle. Shi Qingxuan arranged for Lang Qianqiu to rendezvous there, but Lang Qianqiu disrupts the gambling and is suspended from the ceiling by Hua Cheng, who lounges behind silk curtains. Xie Lian gambles for Lang Qianqiu's release. Through a narrow slit in the curtains, Hua Cheng guides Xie Lian's hands to teach him dice technique, an intimate contact that draws giggles from the ghost audience. Hua Cheng then emerges in his true form: slightly older and taller than his youthful disguise, with raven-black hair, red robes, and a single bright eye behind a black eyepatch.
After regrouping, Xie Lian spots a bandaged ghost boy from Volume 1 being beaten by ghosts. The Waning Moon Officer, a prominent figure in Ghost City, escorts Xie Lian to Paradise Manor, Hua Cheng's private residence. There, Hua Cheng locates the boy, who reveals he is from Yong'an, not Xianle. The news is alarming because Human Face Disease, a plague that causes grotesque faces to erupt from the body, was thought exclusive to Xianle. Xie Lian names the boy Lang Ying and resolves to care for him.
When Hua Cheng briefly leaves, Xie Lian follows the Waning Moon Officer and watches him unlock a magically sealed room with enchanted dice. Xie Lian suspects the missing official may be imprisoned inside. Separately, Hua Cheng shows Xie Lian his armory, where Xie Lian meets the sentient scimitar Eming, whose hilt bears a silver eye that squints happily when petted, convincing him to dismiss warnings about the blade.
That night, Shi Qingxuan infiltrates the manor. Using luck Hua Cheng transferred to Xie Lian through physical contact, the two open the sealed passage. After harrowing detours through monster tunnels, they find Ming Yi, the Earth Master, one of five elemental heavenly officials, gravely wounded. Ming Yi had been spying on Hua Cheng for the Heavenly Realm for over a decade. Xie Lian supposes Hua Cheng likely discovered Ming Yi's identity after spotting him at Banyue Pass and imprisoned him.
Attempting to escape, Xie Lian lands in Hua Cheng's lap in the armory. Shi Qingxuan summons winds to break through the roof, and Lang Qianqiu crashes in, swinging his greatsword. Xie Lian grabs a sword from the wall and throws himself between the two blades, deflecting Lang Qianqiu's strike and blocking Eming. His right arm is severely mangled. Shi Qingxuan's wind powers fan a small fire far beyond intention, and over half of Paradise Manor burns.
Back in the Heavenly Court, Lang Qianqiu seizes Xie Lian's wrist and calls him State Preceptor, the title of Yong'an's royal tutor. He explains that the masked State Preceptor Fangxin, who taught him swordsmanship for five years, committed the Gilded Banquet Massacre, slaughtering the royal family at Lang Qianqiu's 17th birthday feast. He recognizes Xie Lian's two-sword technique and reveals he once killed Fangxin and sealed the body. Xie Lian confesses, but Jun Wu refuses banishment and detains him for interrogation.
Hua Cheng breaks into the Heavenly Court, connecting Xie Lian's palace to a remote valley via a teleportation array, a magical formation enabling instant transit. His wraith butterflies swarm Feng Xin and Mu Qing while leaving Xie Lian untouched, and he pulls Xie Lian through. Lang Qianqiu pursues them and forces a duel by hurling the sword Fangxin at Xie Lian's feet. Xie Lian agrees but immediately binds Lang Qianqiu with Ruoye, his sentient silk band. Bound on the ground, Lang Qianqiu declares he will never become hollow with hatred. Xie Lian laughs with genuine relief.
Hua Cheng transforms Lang Qianqiu into a roly-poly doll and leads Xie Lian into the lair of Qi Rong, the Green Ghost, one of the Four Calamities (the four most notorious ghost powers) and Xie Lian's younger cousin. After restoring Lang Qianqiu, Hua Cheng forces Qi Rong to confess while blocking Xie Lian from intervening. Qi Rong reveals that Prince An Le, the last descendant of Xianle royalty, orchestrated the Gilded Banquet under Qi Rong's manipulation. Xie Lian, as Fangxin, discovered the conspiracy mid-execution, killed An Le to prevent further bloodshed, and killed the Yong'an king to stop the extermination of Xianle survivors. He took sole blame to protect both peoples. Lang Qianqiu, overwhelmed, bisects Qi Rong and departs to hunt the ghost's true remains.
Alone with Hua Cheng, Xie Lian breaks down, anguished that doing the right thing produced such devastation. Hua Cheng tells him firmly that he was not wrong. When Xie Lian warns against placing too much faith in any person, Hua Cheng replies that for some, the mere existence of a certain person in this world is hope in itself. The two free over 300 captive humans from the lair.
Jun Wu later reveals that Hua Cheng has an unidentified agent within the Heavenly Realm and warns Xie Lian to remain cautious. Xie Lian visits the hidden Imperial Mausoleum beneath Mount Taicang, where he discovers that Qi Rong, having possessed an innocent man's body, desecrated his mother's coffin. Enraged, Xie Lian raises the sword Fangxin as the scene cuts away.
The volume's second arc flashes back 800 years to Xie Lian's youth in Xianle. At 17, he performs as the God-Pleasing Martial Warrior, the lead ceremonial role in the kingdom's most important religious festival. When a bandaged child falls from the city wall, Xie Lian catches him but loses his golden mask, cutting the parade short in an inauspicious disruption. The flashback reveals the dynamics among young Xie Lian, Feng Xin, Mu Qing, and Qi Rong. Mu Qing endures bullying due to his low social standing while Xie Lian advocates for his talent. Qi Rong captures the child and drags him through the streets; Xie Lian rescues the boy, who gives his nickname as Honghong-er.
At Mount Taicang, resentful spirits swarm toward the child, and Chief State Preceptor Mei Nianqing divines that Honghong-er bears the fate of the Star of Solitude, destined to bring destruction to everyone around him. Xie Lian embraces the screaming child, insisting it is not his fault. He defiantly declares that if the heavens condemn him for doing right, then the heavens are wrong. That night, Honghong-er vanishes. After further travels, Xie Lian ascends to the heavens, an event that astounds all three realms. The story continues in Volume 3.
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